Intel says it plans to pay the fine and get the money back if it wins on appeal

The largest chipmaker on the planet -- Intel -- has appealed the EU ruling that fined it $1.45 billion for antitrust allegations. The massive fine is the largest ever imposed on a company by the EU and stemmed from what the EU calls abuse of its market dominant position against AMD.

The huge charge forced Intel to report a loss for the second quarter of 2009 after posting numbers that were higher than what Wall Street expected. Intel spokesman Chuck Malloy said, "Our position is that the decision was wrong and we said that from the day it was announced. It was wrong on many levels."

Mulloy also said that Intel plans to pay the fine and if it wins on appeal, it will get the money back from the EU. A spokesman for the European Commission said that the body "is confident that its antitrust decision against Intel is legally watertight."

Reutersquotes Intel spokesman Robert Manetta saying, "We believe the European Commission misinterpreted some evidence and ignored other pieces of evidence."

The fine was levied against Intel after an eight-year investigation concluded. Some analysts believe that the EU ruling could pressure American legal agencies to take action against Intel. Reuters reports that the FTC and the New York attorney general's office are both investigating Intel.

"It's okay. The scenarios aren't that clear. But it's good looking. [Steve Jobs] does good design, and [the iPad] is absolutely a good example of that." -- Bill Gates on the Apple iPad